Issue Of Illegal Immigration

The debate of who should be allowed to enter the United States has been an issue for many years, with the large number of people entering and living here illegally this has become a significant talking point amongst the candidates in this presidential election. But are their views something that should be shared and supported by Christians today? There are definitely two opposing views from Christians on this topic. I will present both views regarding illegal immigrants in the United States and then I will present my own opinion on this topic.

America is deemed the land of the free and the home of the brave. The very fabric of this great nation was built upon immigrants from the Pilgrims landing on Plymouth Rock to the millions of immigrants landing at Ellis Island. America is known as a melting pot of many different cultures and ethnic groups with roughly 11.7 million illegal immigrants living here. There has been a long standing love/hate relationship with the issue of immigration. It has long been debated as to whether or not we should continue to allow immigrant into our country so freely.

“More than any other nation on Earth, America has constantly drawn strength and spirit from wave after wave of immigrants. In each generation, they have proved to be the most restless, the most adventurous, the most innovative, the most industrious of people. Bearing different memories honoring different heritages, they have strengthened our economy, enriched our culture, renewed our promise of freedom and opportunity for all” (Clinton 146). Those are some wise words from a former president who explains the importance of immigrants and has the mentality of a person who has reason. For many, or everybody, walking through a hot, dry desert with no water or even through a cold, windy and rainy desert would not be an activity that they would like to engage. Even though this dangerous and severe weather goes on, several people still immigrate illegally because they want what is going to be best for them. Some make it all the way and unfortunately some we do not hear about ever again.

No issue in any immigration policy kindles more dispute than the issue of illegal immigration. Unfortunately, some people confuse legal and illegal immigration. Legal immigrants are here legally. They have the proper, legal documents that allow them to live and work in the U.S. without complications. Illegal immigrants are defined as anyone who was born in a country other than the U.S. to parents who are not official U.S. citizens; they enter the U.S. without legal documents to prove their legal citizenship. Yet before the twentieth century, many individuals and families immigrated to the U.S. without restriction, and illegal immigration was not a problem at that time. Restrictive immigration quotas were presented, but even with limitations, citizens of the Western Hemisphere countries continued to immigrate outside of the quotas. Not until the 70th Congress did the Senate Committee pass an amendment to remove Mexico from the list of countries where families and individuals could immigrate without a quota. However, World War II began to require more and more troops, and the U.S. government looked toward Mexico because of the lack of manpower rather than issues regarding illegal immigration. The U.S. and Mexico endorsed an agreement that permitted Mexicans to work in America as a method to attend to the concerns of food processing in the U.S. during the war (Anderson, 91-93). In more recent years, President Obama, in an executive action, announced changes to DACA (Deferred

The issue of illegal immigration is one of the hotly debated topics in almost every facet of society, especially among political leaders. This topic has also received huge media attention and reaction in the recent past including an article written by William Finnegan and published by The New Yorker. The article focuses on addressing the issue of borderlines and is based on the move by 17 Congress members, who wrote a letter on 28th April 2010 demanding an instant action from President Obama to enhance border security. While the increase in illegal immigration has declined in the recent past, there is still a great need to enhance border security, particularly in the as violence in the neighborhood of U.S. Mexico has continued to escalate at an alarming rate. Therefore, evaluating the need to improve border security to lessening illegal immigration is vital for enhancing the country's security and understanding its impacts on America's economy and labor force.

Historically, the United States accepts more immigrants than all other industrialized nations combined. According to the article, Sill Missing: Undocumented Immigrants in Health Care Reform pointed out that in 2010, the president of the United Stated, Barack Obama, signed the Affordable Care Act (ACA) to reject undocumented immigrants from purchasing health insurance coverage through the health exchanges. Moreover, they would not benefit from Medicaid as well (Galarneau, 2011)

Charles B.Rangel once state a quote about immigrants settling in America. "America was born as a nation of immigrants who have always contributed to its greatness". This country is based on freedom, not having amnesty for immigrants has a positive and negative outcome. Statistically, it is about 11.2 million unauthorized immigrants residing in America, with that being said, without the statics Americans wouldn't even notice because there are so many people in this country with different faces seen daily.

As the issue of undocumented immigrants once again dominates the news headlines, our politicians are faced with the difficult task of enforcing the laws of our land, yet humanely and ethically tending to those who illegally reside within America 's borders. As the political parties face off with differing ideologies, the undocumented, who are seen as victims from one side and criminals from the other, are caught in this citizenship purgatory until a political compromise can be achieved. Until such a compromise occurs, the nation is left dealing with the fallout of this population’s existence. Not belonging, they are left to fend for themselves while living in the shadows. Surviving through government assistance or using a stolen identity as a means to gain employment, the undocumented struggle to survive in a nation that is aware of their existence yet chooses to do nothing about it. To address the illegal immigration epidemic in the United States, its leaders must hold all lawbreakers accountable while compassionately and ethically addressing the issue through a balanced approach of amnesty and deportation.

There exists a problem in America today that cannot fail to enter the houses of every citizen, influence the thoughts of every individual, and stir the wild imaginations of every free thinker: the problem of illegal aliens traversing the sacred borders of our beloved country. Certain individuals have recently proposed ideas regarding this that have entranced the American people, advocating building a wall separating the United States from its long-time neighbor and trade-partner Mexico. However, after much consideration and calculation I have found his idea grossly mistaken in its computation. A simple wall will be insufficient and far too conservative to solve this crisis of borders. Therefore, in response to America's growing interest in

Illegal immigration is an on-going issue, which is of much importance in the United States today. It has been overlooked for many years, however it has reached a point where it can no longer be ignored. Most of the illegal immigrants, 54% to be exact, come through the Mexican border. (Hayes 5) Since the early 1980’s, the number of illegal Mexican immigrants has risen at an incredible rate, causing the United States government to take action to create an even-handed solution that would be in the interest of both the illegal Mexicans and the citizens of the United States. This, however, has proven to be very difficult since it is still an issue today. The argument is that the

Which makes a twisted kind of sense. The man captured the attention of an entire country when he started off his presidential campaign railing against undocumented immigrants, and has made a name for himself as a presidential candidate spouting off hateful drivel. It’s been a ratings boon for networks, a rallying cry for conservatives and self-congratulatory bonanza for liberals that have taken to Facebook to bash him.

“I will build a great wall- and nobody builds walls better than me, believe me- and I’ll build them very inexpensively on our southern border, and I will make Mexico pay for that wall. Mark my words”-Donald Trump. Whether the United States builds a wall, deports hundreds of thousands of illegal immigrants, or does nothing about it, the so called “uncontrollable problem” of immigration is still present today. America, for the past 100 years, has been faced with this dilemma that immigrants come and pursue the American dream but some doing it illegally. Not only has that been an added contribution to the issue of America’s economic stability but also how America is seen as a nation. Immigration, now more than ever, has become a national crisis that needs to be taken care of immediately.

Immigration is one hot topic in today’s conversation and society. Many think that immigrants coming to America are taking many jobs away from who need them. Some also think that there are jobs being taken away are not ones that Americans would not perform due to the horrible working conditions, low pay, and lack of important medical coverage. The immigration issue has come to a point where the United States must make a decision to spend a lot of money to curtail the amount of immigrants coming here.

Illegal immigration is a huge issue in many countries, include the United States. It is also one of the complex issues to fix and manage. It involves and effects many area, such as social issues, economic issues, public safety issues, and political issues. Many states in the United States have their own state laws to regulate and fight back for the illegal immigrations and try to protect the interests of their citizens. However, most of the regulations do not work out, because of different opinions of interest groups, political parties, and public.

President Trump campaigned on the promise to build a border wall with Mexico, and to have Mexico pay for it. The proposed wall would cost nearly $22 billion, stretch 1250 miles of rugged desert landscape, and take over three years to build (Goins-Phillips, 2017). It is understandable why President Trump sees this as the only course of action to mitigate illegal immigration. From 1993-2004, illegal immigration numbers rose from 4.3 million to 9.3 million immigrants, a majority of whom entered the U.S. from the southern border and are either Mexican or from other Latin-American nations (Wolf, n.d.). Border patrol units stationed on the southern border are grossly ineffective at stopping this influx of illegals. Add to the situation the practice of “sanctuary cities”, where certain municipalities and counties within the U.S. are refusing to enforce the federal immigration law by refusing to turn over illegal immigrants to Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Overall, a border wall will only mitigate part of the problem. It won’t tackle the issue of what to do with illegal aliens already in the country and it won’t account for immigrants who either use a different means of entering the U.S. or are crafty enough to circumvent the wall.